Acupuncture for Premenstrual Syndrome at Different Intervention Time: A Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Background. Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is one of the most common gynecological conditions with no standard modern therapeutic schedule. Some studies have reported the effects of acupuncture in treating PMS, but the intervention time varies. This review evaluated the efficacy of acupuncture for patients with PMS and the appropriate time to initiate acupuncture therapy. The review has been registered on the “PROSPERO” website; the registration number is CRD42018109724. Methods. A comprehensive literature search was performed on 9 electronic databases from the time of inception to September 2018. RCTs studies on acupuncture for PMS compared with medication, sham acupuncture, or no treatment were included. Statistical analysis and investigation of heterogeneity source were carried out using RevMan5. 3. Results. A total of 15 studies, comprising of 1103 cases, were included. Overall, acupuncture significantly increased the effective rate of PMS compared with medicine and sham acupuncture. Subgroup analyses showed no significant difference among different intervention time to start acupuncture treatment. Among the acupoints involved in the treatment of PMS, SP6, LR3, and RN4 were the most commonly used. Conclusions. The current meta-analysis reveals that acupuncture leads to better effective rate, but the intervention time has no significant effect on the efficacy of acupuncture treatment for PMS. SP6, LR3, and RN4 are the most commonly used acupoints in treating PMS. However, large-scale, case-control studies with rigorous designs are required to provide more accurate evidence.

Management of Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder: A Scoping Review

“…168 Two meta-analyses conducted similarly noted greater efficacy of acupuncture over placebo in pooled data. 169,170 One recent RCT of auriculotherapy failed to separate from placebo. 171 A meta-analysis and systematic review of reflexology for PMS found an overall effect for the intervention in reduction of severity of symptoms, with increased effect shown with longer duration of reflexology sessions.…”

Avances en el manejo del Trastorno Disfórico Premenstrual

“…Partiendo de la premisa de que el TDPM y el SPM se originan gracias a los cambios en el yin-yang durante el ciclo menstrual, múltiples autores se empeñan en relacionar el efecto de la acupuntura (que precisamente busca restaurar este ciclo a través de la colocación de agujas en varias partes del cuerpo) con los desequilibrios del ciclo menstrual. Una revisión sistemática muestra que la efectividad de la acupuntura es superior a otras terapias para el TDPM (Zhang et al, 2019). Este grupo refiere que no hay cambios significativos si se aplica en cualquier momento antes o durante la menstruación.…”

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“…However, you should be cautious and talk to your doctor before using herbal remedies to relieve symptoms. Some herbal supplements, such as milk thistle, can have side effects when taken with other medications [5].…”